30 December 2009 8:19 PM

What's your club's New Year's Resolution?

Saracens

Don't do a Gloucester

The Westcountry club finished the 06/07 and 07/08 season in the No 1 spot - having dominated for so much of the campaign - only to implode so dramatically when it mattered; humiliated 44-16 by a rampant Leicester Tigers in the 2007 Twickenham final, and clawed out by the same opponents at the semi-final stage the following year. Sarries are sailing in unchartered waters and must realise the Premiership can only be lost at this stage. It may seem self-defeating but Brendan Venter's squad must save some heart and soul for the real must-wins. Don't dominate the league and then screw up the play-offs.

London Irish

Stick to what works for you

Consistently the most entertaining side in the Premiership (although pushed for that title of late by an adventurous Northampton outfit) they came so agonisingly close to glory last year, but failed to stop the Tigers at Twickenham. Irish must trust in their attacking philosophy and stop trying to beat opponents at their own game. They lost to Leicester in the Grand Final because they tried to take them on playing safe, old-school Leicester rugby. If they'd thrown the ball around and stuck to the tactics which had hitherto made them so successful, they might just be the reigning champions.

Northampton

Tempt Johnson to try a little tenderness

Send a late Christmas card to Johnno and invite him to spend a couple of weekends at Franklin's Gardens. There is a wealth of young English talent brewing in the Midlands that seem to be off Twickenham's radar for no discernible reason. It would work wonders for the status of the club to get some more of their young Saints into the national fold - most notably Courtney Lawes and Ben Foden who, on current form, cannot be ignored any longer. Surely. England are sterile and need some young blood. Look no further than this lot.

Leicester

Feed the Caterpillar

If the marketing gurus at Leicester manage to fill up the new Caterpillar Stand week in, week out during its first full year in use, then the Tigers' finances will flourish. They've got an enviable fanbase in the city anyway so it shouldn't be too tough. Welford Road was a hard enough place to visit before the latest refurbishments. Now, with a raucous home sell-out crowd off 24,000, teams will dread the trip. A losing bonus point will be seen as a result. The Cockerill and the Caterpillar make a deadly combination.

Wasps

Find a new home

It's the opposite story for Wasps, who need to find a new cocoon before they can build a Caterpillar. Wasps have consistently over-achieved for a club stuck in a ground share on the outskirts of nowhere and are desperately hunting for a new home. On the pitch they're doing pretty well and will no doubt improve, as always, towards the business end of the season. A fit captain would help, too. Tom Rees has been a big loss and they need to patch up his everything and get him back to full strength.

Harlequins

Say no to Deano

Tell Dean Richards thanks for everything but he can't come back, not when his ban ends, not ever. His presence would be constant reminder of a truly dark summer in the history of the club and surely taint any future success. Chief executive Mark Evans has done some wonderful things for the club - including the titanic Christmas Twickenham fixture - but inviting Deano back would be a huge mistake, regardless of the strength of their professional and personal relationship. Richards will remain a monumental figure in the history of the club for what he did pre-spring '09, but he can never return. Live by the sword and all that...

Newcastle

Don't get sucked downwards

It was about this time last year when the club made a collective decision not to get relegated and avoided an end-of-season scrap by scrapping a couple of months early. At the turn of last year they were quite brilliant. Before the start of the season, most of the cognoscenti (or at least those who claim to be) thought the relegation battle would be a two-horse race again, this time between the Falcons and new boys Leeds. The next two months can stop that happening - starting with Gloucester at home. Same again lads.

Gloucester

Give the gaffer time

Give the new boss at least one pre-season to put together a squad of his choosing and to inject his own personality in the camp. He had hardly any time with Dean Ryan's grumpy leftovers before this season began and Gloucester have suffered as a result. Blowing hot and cold, though mostly cold, they look like a raw mix of ideas; a walking, tackling, scrummaging identity crisis. Redpath deserves some time to sort that out. A couple of signings could go a long way.

Sale

Save it for the weekend

Sharing a ground with Stockport County means home games at Edgeley Park are shoved to Friday nights for obvious reasons. To be fair, it seems to work for the rugby club and the attendances don't seem to suffer too much, but it's a nightmare for travelling fans who very rarely get to see their sides play at Sale. Getting more games in the sociable Saturday afternoon slot - at least when Stockport are playing away - would give rugby fans nationwide the chance to taste the Edgeley experience, even if it can only happen once every few years.

Worcester

Widen the web

A popular local club must use the Wembley experience - when they take on the might of Saracens - to win a few friends. Now a regular fixture in the top tier, Worcester must lose its insular identity and expand its fanbase any way it can. Attracting tens of thousands of Londoners to the home of football is a good place to start. Those 'new' Saracens fans might just be won over if Mike Ruddock keeps his squad playing the way that works for them; more kicked against than kicking.

Bath

Clean up your act

Not a happy time at the Rec. A faithful crowd is turning fickle as the club suffer from a summer hangover like no other. Some decent performances in the Heineken Cup have been overshadowed by some inconsistent and occasionally woeful league performances. Getting booed off the pitch in the Westcountry is a new low. Too good to go down? No club is and Steve Meehan knows it. As do his squad. The clock is ticking if they want to get up the other end of the table and they should at least be aiming for a European spot.

Leeds

Err... don't get relegated

A phenomenal Christmas effort means all the clubs in touching distance can feel the Carnegie hounds breathing down their necks. Neil Back's men must use the Six Nations window - when the big Premiership sides will lose key members of their squad for a considerable chunk of time - to get some more victories under the belt and climb that table. There's one hell of a team spirit brewing in Yorkshire and they will defend their Premier status to the death. Good luck to 'em.

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